[Watch] When Michael Clarke's controversial catch angered Sunil Gavaskar in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Former Australian cricketer Michael Clarke has been involved in quite a few controversies in his cricketing career. Among these is one that sparked a huge debate on the spirit of the game and decision-making.
It was during the 2007-2008 Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) when India toured Australia. The incident occurred during the second Test in Sydney. The hosts had posted a huge total of 463 runs in the first innings. India's batters made a solid comeback, putting up 532 runs in the second innings.
After India took the lead, Australia scored 401/7 declared in the third innings of the Test to set India a target of 333 runs in the final innings. On the fifth and final day, India had already lost half the side with just 115 runs on the board. While the big names at the top failed to score, Sourav Ganguly put up a fight, batting on 51.
Ganguly, facing Brett Lee, edged one back to Michael Clarke, who was positioned in the slip cordon. While Clarke claimed to have taken the catch cleanly, it did not seem conclusive. On-field umpire Mark Benson, who appeared to be doubtful, did not consult the third umpire to review if the catch was taken cleanly or not.
Instead, he asked the fielding side and trusted their claim that Michael Clarke had taken the catch cleanly, thus giving Sourav Ganguly out. This act led to an outrage as Sunil Gavaskar, who was commentating during the incident, lashed out at the umpire.
"This is where he's asking the captain, 'Did he catch it?' And then he says yes. Well, why don't you ask the batsman then? Why is it that the fielder's word has to be believed and not the batsman's? Here's a man who did not walk when he was caught down the leg side, so why should his word be taken that he or his fielder has taken the catch?," Gavaskar said on air.
"It can not be that you are honest when you're fielding and not so honest when you're batting. That is nonsense, utter nonsense. That's why I do not agree with this philosophy of checking with the fielder, and if the fielder says it's out, you take his word for it," he added.
"The same fielder, as a batsman, can stay at the crease when he knows he's nicked the ball. This is the same man, Michael Clarke, who stood his ground when he was caught by Rahul Dravid yesterday, and the Indians had to appeal strongly before he was finally given out," Gavaskar continued.
You can watch the dismissal and hear Gavaskar's comments here:
Replays showed Michael Clarke did not complete the catch fairly as claimed
When the replay of the dismissal was shown during the game, it was clearly evident that Michael Clarke had not pocketed the ball fair and square. The ball was seen touching the ground.
"Now just have a look at the catch. This is not clear. Now see, when he rolls over, there he has grounded the ball on the turf, so that is not out because he is in the act of taking the catch," Gavaskar went on to add.
"You can see that very clearly here. Never mind if he picked it up on the half-volley or on the full; right here itself, Ganguly is not out because he (Clarke) has touched the ground with the ball," he said.